Seed-tester.



N0. 836,993. PATENTED NOV. 27, 1906. M. RAHR & H. B. BAUER.

SBBD TBSTER.

APP(LIOATIOIT IILED SEPT.1B, 1906.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MAXIMILIAN RAHR AN D HANS B. BAUER, OF MANITOWOC, WISCONSIN,

ASSIGNORS TO THE I/VILLIAM RAHR SONS COMPANY, OF MANITO- WOC, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF WVISCONSIN.

SEED-TESTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 27, 1906.

.pplication filed September 15, 1906. Seria.l N0. 334.817.

T0 all whoml 7lt 7mey conccrn:

Be it known that We, MAXIMILIAN RAI-IR andILms B. BAUER, cieizens of ehe United States, and residents of Manitowoc, in the county of Manieowoc and Stets of Wisconsin, have inventecl certain new and useful Improvemenes in Seecl-Testers, of which the following is a specification.

Our inveneion relates t-o a seed-eester or germinaeing dev1'ce 1 articularly intended for use in making germinaeion teses of barley and oeher coarse grains in order eo test their maleing qualities.

In testing coarse .seeds or grains to determine eheir malting qualities ie is essential that ehey be subjeceed es nearly as possible eo the same condieions which obtain in ehe malt-house during ehe malting process. In such process the moiseure is supplied mainly fro1n above, and the amoune supplied varies with ehe characeer of the grain, sonne grains requiring more than oehers. Various means have been proposecl und various testers have been manufactured and put upon the markee; but neieher the means nor ehe apparatus heretofore provided have produced good 1esults. In most ol' ehese teseing clevices the recepeacle used to coneain the grains undcr ereatmene is placecl in a tray coneaining water, and the water is supplied by absor tion Iron1 below; but it is obviously i1npossi le in such case eo vary ehe amoune of moisture to suit ehe requiremenes of differen'e loes of grain. In ehcse clevices the seecls or grains are placed within ehe receptacle in various quaneieies, usually n1ore than one laye1, so thae the seecls are superposed upon each oeher. Barley greeins are practically of uniform size, and in order to secure the bese re- -sules it is desirable ehae they should be tested in a single layer instead of ehe grains being superposed upon each other. Ie is further desirable eo provide a receptaclc of a definite sizethat is eo sexy, one which Will contain a given number 0f grains of barley and to diseribute them in a single layer thereinalso to supply ehe moist-ure which causes ehe genninaei0u or sprouting to take place from above instead of fron1 below and in such manner thae the quantity of moiseure may be regulaeed anal adapted eo the requiremenes of the particular lot of grain under treatment..

In ehe accompanying drawings we have shown our improved bester, Figure 1 being a perspective view, und Fig 2 a transverse sectional elevation.

In the dmwings, 5 represenes the body 0f thc recepeacle, which is preferably receangi1- leer in form und provided with an upseanding fial1ge 6, within which is a ledge 7, surrounding the seid receptaclc or gerniinatingspace 8. 'Ihe bottom 0l this receptacle is preferably rough, so as to collect and retain moiseure. The heighe of this ledge is substantially equal to ehe diameeer of ehe grains 0f barley, or, in oeherwvorcls, ehe germinaeingspace is of sufliciene depeh only t0 receive a single layer of gmins. Upon the leclgeis placecl one 01 more sheets of blotter or filter paper .9, and upon this is placed the lid o1 cover 10. The body 5 and ehe lid 10 are preferably composed of a porous material, such as earthenwzere or clay, and provided with escapeapertures ehe body having apertures extending "ehrough ehe upstanding fiange and ledgc praceically in ehe plane cf ehe boteom of ehe germinating-chzember, as inclicated ae 1 l, and ehe cover having vertical apertures 12 through its body. The bottom 0f t-he recepeaclc is slightly arched along its ceneral portionancl sloped eoward the apereures 11, so ehat whcn the steeped barley is turned ineo ehe tester ehe excess waeer may drein ofl therethrough. The apertures 11 also permit the escape of thc carbonic-acid as.

o The tester, coneaining a single layer of grains 0f barley in coneact wieh ehe superposed Meyer of filter o1 bloteer paper satu- 12eeed Wieh moisture an d. hold in place by ehe lid or cover, is kept ae a suieable temperature, subsezmeially the sa1ne es that of the malting compartment 01' drun1, and any number of these testers may be placed in a suitable receptacle, and, if desired, such recepeacle may coneain 1noise sheets of fi1eer-paper or other moistur-retaining medium, although we prefer in testing barley to supply the moisture fro1n abovc. I/Vith these teseers ehe progress cf germinaeion may be wzeeched and when co1npleted ehe n1ae o1 sheet 0'f grains may be broken apart and examined when the unmodified grains will fall out and may be couneecl, the couneing being facilieaeed by IOO constructing the germinating-chamber 0f a. size to contain a definite number 0f grains say two hundred.

We claim 1. A seed-tester comprising a body portion having a germinating-chamber of such dimensions as t0 hold a single 1ayer of grains and provided with a ledge t0 maintain a moisture-retaining sheet, and a cover, substanoially as described.

2. Aseed-tester consisting of a body portion hav1'ng an upstanding flange and a ledge wiohin the flange defining a sha1low germinating-chamber, and a cover adapted to fit Within the flange and to be supported by the ledge, substantially as described.

3. A seed-tester comprisin in combinag tion, a. body of porous materia provided with an upstanding flange, a ledge within said sheets, and a cover adapted to fit within ohe fiange and confine such sheets upon the ledge,

substantially as described.

4.. A seed-tester consisting 01' a orqus bo iy having an upstanding flange, a edge Withln the flange, apertures extending through the body in the plane 0f the arched bottom of the germinat-ing-chamber, and a perforated 1id 0r c0ver, substantially .as desc-ribed.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands, this 12th day of September, 1906, at Manitowoc, Wisconsiq.

MAXIMILIAN RAHR. HANS B. BAUER.

Witnesses WM. HALBERG, WALTER NIMZ. 

